Title: A Thin Disguise (Richter #2)
Author: Catherine Bybee
Published on: 6th July 2021
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Rating: 5 out of 5.
A Thin Disguise is the second book in Catherine Bybee’s Richter series.
What happens when a former gun-for-hire and a federal agent fall in love? This isn’t your usual boy-meets-girl or villain-turns-hero story. Meet Olivia, an ex Richter student and former assassin. She’s recruited by Neil to keep eyes on a witness in the high-profile child prostitution trial. Olivia follows the perp’s cousin to a hotel and comes face-to-face with Leo Grant, a federal agent. As Olivia is in disguise, Leo doesn’t recognize her. He’s in awe of the beautiful woman standing in front of him.
A few minutes later, they meet again. But before Leo could engage her in a flirty talk, Olivia lunges towards him, screaming ‘get down’. Olivia is shot and seriously hurt. Olivia wakes up in the hospital in a haze of pain and no memory of her past. Leo learns she’s one of Neil’s team members. It is up to Leo and Neil to keep her safe – at least until her memory’s back…
Wowzer! What a fantastic story! I discovered Catherine Bybee’s Richter series earlier this year when I participated in Over The River PR’s blog tour for Changing the Rules. I really loved the series plot and the writing and was eagerly waiting to read the next book.
Catherine Bybee is a master storyteller. Be it the setting or the suspense or the character development, I absolutely loved every it of this book. Richter school is notoriously known for training young kids to be assassins. Claire, whom we saw in the previous book, was ‘rescued’ by Neil. Same goes for Sasha, Jax and Olivia. In A Thin Disguise, the spotlight is on Olivia. As an ex Richter student and former gun-for-hire, Olivia is good at keeping her tracks covered. To the rest of the world, she’s dead. She’s hired by Neil to keep track of a witness in a high-profile child prostitution case. The perp is convicted of the horrendous crimes and is sent to prison for decades.
Olivia gets shot and Leo blames himself for it. She took the bullet meant for him. He takes leave of absence from his work and joins Neil and team to help keep Olivia safe. Safe from the killer and safe from herself. Olivia is a trained assassin but right now, she hardly remembers who she is. As the team spends weeks at a cabin in Colorado, it is pretty obvious that Leo and Olivia feel attracted to each other. But few days later, Olivia finally remembers who she is…
Oh my, the romance! Steamy, saucy and sexy romance certainly adds a dash of oomph to the story. The suspense is well-maintained throughout the story. With each book in the series, we readers are given a glimpse of the torturous times at Richter school. Olivia’s childhood is no different. Orphaned and moved to Richter in promise of having a ‘good future’.
The second half of the story is where things get really tense. Olivia is on a quest to find the man who tried to kill her. She’s torn between her feelings for Leo and her stubbornness in not wanting to fall in love. (New Olivia v/s Richter Olivia.) The ending is mind-blowing; the plot to catch the killer is nothing short of a nail-biting scenario.
Fantastic writing, excellent character development and a suspenseful story with a dash of romance. A Thin Disguise by Catherine Bybee is a highly recommended read from me. The third book is releasing later this year and I cannot wait to see what’s next for the gang!
Many thanks to Jessica Preeg for the ARC.
